


Jamba on the Beach

by BetaCobra



Category: Cobra Kai (Web Series)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Bisexual Character, Body Image, F/F, Friends to Lovers, Insecurity, Self-Esteem Issues, Sexist Language
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-03
Updated: 2020-08-03
Packaged: 2021-03-05 21:29:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,500
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25682065
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BetaCobra/pseuds/BetaCobra
Summary: After the incident at the Encino Country Club, Aisha and Tory take a walk along the beach.AU from S2E4
Relationships: Aisha Robinson/Tory Nichols
Comments: 11
Kudos: 37





	Jamba on the Beach

**Author's Note:**

> This is an expansion on two previous drabbles posted in "No Shelter"

“So is she always such a bitch, or did I just catch her on a bad day?”

Aisha glanced at Tory, then looked once more over her shoulder at Sam, who was wiping cake off her as best she could. A sigh parted her lips, sounding irate. “I don’t know what’s been her deal lately,” she explained. And to think, she really thought Sam was getting her shit back together.

“Thanks for having my back,” said Tory. With a sharp grin, she added, “Sounds like she didn’t deserve a friend like you.”

Aisha returned the smile, one tinged with sadness.

Seeing that unhappy look, Tory pressed her lips together for a minute. She had been thinking about calling it a day, but seeing her new friend look so suddenly dejected, a new idea came to her mind. She gestured with her thumb towards the parking lot. “So, how about an _actual_ trip to the beach? No offense, but I’ve had my daily fill of yuppie drama.”

Nodding, Aisha rolled her shoulders and said, “I feel you. Alright, let’s get out of here.”

Plopping their purses, including the vodka Tory had swiped, into the trunk of her car, they got in and were on the road. Aisha drove them in the direction of the coast, blasting Rihanna from the speakers when Tory reached over to turn up the volume.

Once they arrived, they hopped into the local Jamba Juice for a couple of smoothies before heading down to the beach. They strolled up the coastline, feeling the wet sand between their toes and the cool breeze in their hair. It didn’t take long at all before Aisha forgot about the incident with Sam, instead finding herself enjoying the company of the new girl.

“Wait, so you’re saying none of the guys from Cobra Kai have made a move?” Tory inquired, raising an eyebrow. “You’re kidding, right?”

Aisha felt the blood under her cheeks burn, and drank more of her smoothie to cool them down. “They’re probably too intimidated,” she explained, wanting to believe what she was saying. It wouldn’t do well to admit to Tory how much it stung that none of the guys had so much as given her a hint of romantic attention. And she could guess why. “I mean, I’ve kicked all their asses at least once, and not too many guys are into that sort of thing.”

A sharp laugh broke from Tory. “None of the ones worth chasing, anyways.”

Her smile was infectious. “Besides,” added Aisha, “they’re really gross, honestly.”

“Aren’t all boys?” noted Tory, pulling her hair back from her eyes when the ocean wind blew it in her face.

“Yeah, but it’s worse when you’re the only girl in the group,” explained Aisha, adjusting her glasses. “They really forget themselves, they forget you’re a girl. Suddenly they’re talking about bodily functions, or what ‘chick’ from school they’d want to bang. Right in front of your face. Y’know, stuff like that.”

Giving her a fond look, Tory pointed out, “Well, at least you’re not the only girl anymore, right?”

Blushing more at that friendly glance, Aisha adjusted her glasses again, out of habit this time. “I guess not.”

“You know what shuts guys up real fast when they get like that?” remarked Tory as they neared the large and shady pillars of the pier. “Dishing it back. When a girl out-grosses them, you should see the way they get all self-conscious. They really don’t see it coming.”

Aisha chuckled under her breath. “It’s still pretty disgusting, though.”

“Totally,” agreed Tory with a cocky grin. “But when guys step out of line like that, you gotta stand up for yourself.” She raised her hand to take another sip of her Jamba, and Aisha’s eyes were drawn to the spiked bracelet on Tory’s wrist. She remembered what she had told her about it earlier that day at Nestor’s.

“Sounds like you know how to stand up for yourself pretty good,” said Aisha, after biting her bottom lip for a few seconds. “Like with that bracelet? You said you had to use that to fight a guy off, right?” The question made Tory blush, visible on her face in a way it wasn’t for Aisha, although she tried hiding her discomfort behind a tough expression. It made Aisha regret bringing it up.

Tory explained, “He’d been following me around the mall for a while, even when I tried cutting through a Macy’s to lose him. I mean, I don’t know what his intentions were, but you can’t be too careful with creeps, you know?”

“Yeah.” Aisha wondered how many creeps Tory had dealt with to be that vigilant. The only thing she could think to say to that was, “Like you said, all boys are gross, right?”

Tory gave her a knowing glance.

They paused for a quick break by the pier to toss their empty cups in the garbage. Then, taking advantage of the privacy provided by the pillars, they leaned against the wood, giggling at how the cold water splashed up their legs. It almost made Aisha shiver. But not as much as when Tory shuffled closer to her.

“Okay, so if the guys at Cobra Kai all lack the balls to make a move, what about the ones at school?” asked Tory.

Aisha bit her bottom lip again. She didn’t know how serious Tory was being with these questions. She couldn’t help but feel like she was being set up as the punchline to some mean-spirited joke, as she had been with Yasmine; with Sam. Well, if that was the case, the new girl was provoking the wrong Cobra. “Let’s just say I don’t get a lot of secret admirers,” she answered, a hint of an edge to her voice.

Tory tilted her head. “Why not?”

Something between a scoff and a laugh broke out of Aisha. “ _Really_?”

“No, I’m serious,” countered Tory. “I mean, you’ve been nothing but nice to me. And you’re smart and funny.”

Aisha beamed again, in spite of her hesitance to believe that Tory was being sincere with her. But maybe she was being too guarded. Tory might have visually fit into the mean girl clique with Yasmine, Moon, and Sam, but that was about where the similarities ended.

“Plus, you’re pretty loaded,” joked Tory, elbowing Aisha softly. Seeing how that made Aisha giggle, she added, “And we’ve established you can kick a guy’s ass. Believe it or not, some guys _are_ into that.”

Aisha raised her eyebrows, but her cheeks dimpled as the smile remained spread across her face. “Maybe, but none of the guys I’ve met have been.”

“What about the girls then?”

The ocean water spraying up their calves made Aisha shiver again. “Um, well….” She didn’t know how to finish that sentence.

Tory’s features went neutral, but Aisha detected embarrassment in the way she brushed her gradient hair behind her ears. “Sorry, I shouldn’t have assumed.”

Shaking her head, Aisha explained, “No, it’s alright. I mean, I haven’t gotten any attention from girls either, so I haven’t really thought about it. Are you…?”

“What?” Tory grinned. “Heteroflexible? Bicurious?”

“Are you someone who doesn’t believe in labels?” returned Aisha, matching her air of light-heartedness.

“I’m someone who thinks you should have more secret admirers.” Tory’s eyes softened, her tough and sharp exterior smoothing around the edges in a moment of vulnerability. “Well, maybe not ‘secret.’ I think if you meet someone right, someone who’s tough when she shouldn’t have to be…well, then you should make a move, not hide from it.”

Aisha gulped. Was Tory talking about herself or her? Did she see something in Aisha? Past the toughness she’d had to adopt since joining Cobra Kai? Did she see the geeky girl still in there, the one marked by the betrayal of her closest friend, the one surrounded by boys who treated her like one of the guys, the one who would like to be soft again?

She saw the way Tory had opened her hand at her side between them, an invitation waiting to be accepted.

So Aisha accepted it. Her fingertips grazed Tory’s bracelet before wrapping around her hand. And she saw for the first time a kindred spirit. Not just another girl in Cobra Kai, but a girl who had been forced to fight in order to be left alone, a girl who had her own complicated relationship with her body for the unwanted attention it gave her.

Tory look down at their interlocked fingers before lifting her eyes up to Aisha. The waves continued lapping around their legs, the tide rising, but Aisha no longer felt cold from it. Instead, she pressed Tory’s hand warmly and said, “Well, what are you waiting for then?” Her voice was steady and assertive. She was a natural Cobra, after all. “Make a move.”

The cocksure curve returned to the corners of Tory’s lips before she closed the remaining space and pressed them against Aisha’s.


End file.
